John Lord

John Lord is the Chief Growth Officer for Elara Nova. He brings over 45 years of leadership in business growth and operations to the team. 

Prior to joining Elara Nova, John was the Senior Vice President and Business Manager for Jones Group Europe, the European subsidiary of Jones Group International, focused primarily on defense and security advisory services, cybersecurity for critical infrastructure and government agencies, and energy. John also led Jones Group’s Public Sector business, focused on a broad range of solutions for US national defense. John also led the creation of Jones Group’s Middle East business and established a significant business base in Saudi Arabia with their Ministry of Defense. 

Prior to that, John was the Chief Operating Officer for Camber Corporation (now a subsidiary of Huntington Ingalls Industries), leading sustained growth of the company by developing and leading a corporate strategy designed to open new markets, realign its businesses, and build a robust and highly competitive pipeline for the market. John was also the President of Huntsville Operations for Camber, leading the majority of corporate operations for the company along with numerous long-term growth initiatives and acquisitions for Camber’s domestic and international business. 

Prior to Camber, John was the Deputy Group President for SAIC’s Defense Solutions Group. Composed of a team of more than 12,500 professionals, the group’s work focused on command, control, computers, and communications, as well as systems engineering and integration in support of various federal agencies.

Prior to joining SAIC, John was the Chief Operating Officer for Preston Aviation Solutions, an international, wholly owned subsidiary of the Boeing Company, where with offices in Washington, DC and Melbourne, Australia, he focused on leading Preston’s businesses in the Americas and Europe. Preston experienced significant growth in these regions under John’s leadership, including major deals with the FAA, NAV Canada, EuroControl and most of the major civil aviation authorities in Europe. 

John received his MBA from Florida Institute of Technology in 1992, and his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1981. In 2008, John founded and chaired the Board of Directors for Lose the Training Wheels, Inc., a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to teaching children with disabilities how to ride bikes without training wheels. He remains involved with Special Olympics Virginia as a coach for a local Special Olympics women’s basketball team.